(NAPSA) - Some have called it the new wonder food, but many home cooks hoping to easily add nutrients to meals have simply called it a wonderful relief.

It's flaxseed, a seed with a lightly nutty taste thatQwhen purchased ground or ground in a coffee grinder or baby-food millQcan be sprinkled on just about anything, from cereal to salad to ice cream and smoothies.

In addition to being a great source of protein, fiber and nutrients including calcium, magnesium and folic acid, about two tablespoons of ground flax provide your daily dose of omega-3s, making the seed one of the best plant-based ways to add the all-important fatty acid to your diet. The seed is also rich in plant-derived compounds called "lignans" that have been shown to help in the fight against cancer, and that might also help with symptoms of menopause.

Getting More Flax

Try stirring ground flax into soups, mixing it in meatloaf, or sprinkling it in your morning juice or oatmeal. You can also use flax-seed to coat chicken. Jane Reinhardt-Martin, R.D., L.D., does just that in this recipe for healthful oven-baked fried chicken, taken from her cookbook "The Amazing Flax Cookbook."